''Helliar'' is a ferry owned by

Caledonian Maritime Assets Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (usually shortened to CMAL or CMAssets; Stòras Mara Cailleannach Earr in Scottish Gaelic) owns the ferries, ports, harbours and infrastructure for the ferry services serving the west coast of Scotland, the Firt ...

and operated by

NorthLink Ferries NorthLink Ferries (also referred to as Serco NorthLink Ferries) is an operator of passenger and vehicle ferries, as well as ferry services, between mainland Scotland and the Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland. Since July 2012, it has been ope ...

. Built by Astilleros de Huelva in Spain in 1997 as ''Lehola'' for the

Estonian Shipping Company Eesti Merelaevandus or ESCO, also called Estonian Shipping Company was an Estonian shipping company that operated multipurpose dry cargo and container ships. Technical management of the ships is performed by First Baltic Shipmanagement. The com ...

she has served a number of owners and operators as ''RR Triumph'' and ''Triumph'' before her sale to Clipper Group and being renamed ''Clipper Racer''. In 2011, she was chartered to NorthLink Ferries and renamed ''Helliar''.

History

''Lehola'' was built by Astilleros de Huelva,

Huelva Huelva ( , , ) is a municipality of Spain and the capital of the Huelva (province), province of Huelva, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. Located in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula, it sits betwee ...

Spain as yard number 569. She was ordered on 30 September 1994 and her keel was laid on 20 October 1995. ''Lehola'' was launched on 13 November 1996 and completed on 15 October 1997. She was originally registered with

Nippon Kaiji Kyokai , also known by it s brand name ClassNK, is a non-profit, non-governmental organization ship classification society. ClassNK is one of the seven founding members of the International Association of Classification Societies, otherwise known as I ...

, being transferred to

Det Norske Veritas Det Norske Veritas (DNV), formerly DNV GL, is an international accredited registrar and classification society headquartered in Høvik, Norway. DNV provides services for several industries, including maritime, oil and gas, renewable energy, e ...

on 27 November 2007.

Owners

From 1997 to 2005, ''Lehola'' was owned by the

. In 2005, she was sold to Elmira Shipping & Trading and renamed ''RR Triumph''. In 2007, she was sold to the

Clipper Group Clipper Group is an international shipping company, founded in 1991 by Torben Gülnar Jensen, after a split of Armada Shipping A/S, which was founded in 1972 together with Jørgen Dannesboe. Primary focus is on bulk, especially within the handys ...

and renamed ''Triumph'', being renamed ''Clipper Racer'' in 2008. In 2011, she was chartered to

and renamed ''Helliar'' at a ceremony in

Kirkwall Kirkwall (, , or ; ) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. First mentioned in the ''Orkneyinga saga'', it is today the location of the headquarters of the Orkney Islands Council and a transport hub wi ...

Orkney Islands Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland ...

. In 2019 it was purchased by

.Northern Isles ferries bought by Scottish government
''

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

'' 26 March 2019

Service history

In late 1997, ''Lehola'' entered service with the

on the

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

–

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

–

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

–

Arhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwe ...

route. In August 1998 she was chartered to Czar Peter Line and put into service on the

Moerdijk Moerdijk () is a municipality and a town in the South of the Netherlands, in the province of North Brabant. History The municipality of Moerdijk was founded in 1997 following the merger of the municipalities of Fijnaart en Heijningen, Klunde ...

–

Kronstadt Kronstadt (, ) is a Russian administrative divisions of Saint Petersburg, port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal cities of Russia, federal city of Saint Petersburg, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg, near the head ...

route. In February 1999 she was chartered to Delom and put into service on the

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

–

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

–

Sète Sète (; , ), also historically spelled ''Cette'' (official until 1928) and ''Sette'', is a commune in the Hérault department, in the region of Occitania, southern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Sétois'' (male) and ''Sétoises'' (fem ...

route. In October 2000, she was returned to Estonia Shipping Company and put into service on the

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

– Tallinn route until 31 December 2004. In January 2005, she was chartered to

P&O Ferries P&O Ferries is a British shipping company that operates ferry, ferries from Scotland to Northern Ireland, and from England to Continental Europe (France, Belgium and the Netherlands). The company was created in 2002 through mergers and acquisi ...

and entered service on the

Zeebrugge Zeebrugge (; from , meaning "Bruges-on-Sea"; , ) is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the international port of Bruges-Zeebrugge and a seafront resort with ...

–

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

and

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

– Hull routes. On 11 July 2005, ''Lehola'' was sold to Elmira Shipping,

Piraeus Piraeus ( ; ; , Ancient: , Katharevousa: ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens city centre along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf in the Ath ...

, Greece. She was renamed ''RR Triumph'' and reflagged to Malta, her homeport changing from Tallinn to Valletta. She was then chartered to

and then P&O Irish Sea. In July 2005 she was put into service on the

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

–

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

route. Her charter to P&O Irish Sea ended on 11 February 2007 and she was chartered to

Baleària Baleària is the trading name for the Spanish shipping company Baleària Eurolíneas Marítimas S.A. The company operates passenger ferry services in the Mediterranean and Caribbean. Routes In the Mediterranean region, Baleària operates d ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

later that month. On 30 October 2007, ''RR Triumph'' was sold to

Seatruck Ferries Seatruck Ferries was a UK-based freight-only ferry company which commenced services in 1996. It became a subsidiary of CLdN RoRo, CLdN and was absorbed into the Luxembourg-based parent's overall brand as CLdN RoRo in February 2024. It operated ...

, remaining under the Maltese flag. In December 2007 she was renamed ''Triumph''. From 1 February to 23 March 2008 she was chartered to

Condor Ferries Condor Ferries was an operator of passenger and freight ferry services between the United Kingdom, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey, Bailiwick of Jersey, Jersey and France. History Condor Ferries was formed in 1964 by Channel Island businessme ...

and put into service between

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

and the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...

. In April 2008 she was chartered to the

Isle of Man Steam Packet Company The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company Limited (abbreviated to IoMSPCo or, locally, The Steam Packet ()) is the oldest continuously operating passenger shipping company in the world, having been founded in 1830. The company provides freight, p ...

and put into service on the

Heysham Heysham ( ) is a coastal village in the Lancaster district of Lancashire, England, overlooking Morecambe Bay. It is a ferry port, with services to the Isle of Man and Ireland, and the site of two nuclear power stations. History Of historic ...

–

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

route. On 5 June 2008 she was put into service on Seatruck's Liverpool – Dublin route. on 12 July 2008, she was renamed ''Clipper Racer''. In April 2009 she was chartered to

. In May 2010, she was chartered to Italian ferry operator SNAV and put into service on the

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

route. On 5 October, a contract was signed for the chartering of ''Clipper Racer'' to

. On 5 January 2011, she was renamed ''Helliar''. In 2012 she was again reflagged - this time to the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

. In April 2012 ''Helliar'' was again chartered to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company to cover the refit of before returning to NorthLink the following month.

Description

''MV Helliar'' is long. She has a beam of and a draught of . She is powered by two

Wärtsilä Wärtsilä Oyj Abp (), trading internationally as Wärtsilä Corporation, is a Finnish corporation, Finnish company which manufactures and services power sources and other equipment in the Marine propulsion, marine and energy markets. The core ...

9R32 diesel engines which propel her at . The engines develop each. She has a GT of 7,606, NT of 2,282 and DWT of 5,758. On board there are 1,055 lane metres of trailer space, giving capacity to carry up to 63 trailers.

Sister vessels

*, built as ''Varbola''. *, built as ''Lembitu''. *, built as ''Leili''.

References

External links

Current position of ''Helliar''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helliar Ships of Seatruck Ferries Merchant ships of the Isle of Man 1996 ships Ships built in Spain Ferries of Estonia Transport in Shetland NorthLink Ferries